Navy Man Finds He Cannot Leave Sanford Command

March 5, 1986|By Gary Taylor of The Sentinel Staff

SANFORD — When J.S. ''Red'' Cleveland first set his eyes on Sanford, he liked what he saw.

That was 1943 and Cleveland was an ensign assigned to the Sanford Naval Air Station for operational training. It was the first of several times he was stationed in Sanford during his 26 years in the Navy.

Cleveland was the station's executive officer on Dec. 8, 1965 when it was announced the station was being closed. He decided to retire and make Sanford his home.

In March 1969 Sanford got the station from the federal goverment for a municipal airport and Cleveland was put in charge of the city's department of aviation. When the Sanford Airport Authority took over on Oct. 1, 1971, Cleveland was named director of aviation, the post he still holds.

Cleveland, 63, a native of Cisco, Texas, retired from the Navy as a commander. Several current employees of the airport also were in the Navy, and most of them served in Sanford.

Cleveland's assistant, Marv Greenstein, served in the Navy with Cleveland in the 1950s. Three of the four men who work in the Sanford-Central Florida Airport tower worked in the same facility while in the Navy.

Cleveland could not be happier with his job: ''What could be better than doing what you love and being paid for it?''

People often ask Cleveland when he is going to retire, but that is not what he has on his mind. When he gets up in the morning and does not look forward to going to work he will reassess things, he said.

Until then, Cleveland is the man who makes the Sanford-Central Florida Airport tick and he loves every minute of it.